Thunder Machine > Space con Ken Kesey

Jam out of final chorus plays like waves crashing on the beach....

Happy with the new piano player - they just wanna be the greatest saloon band in the world.

Turns into a real shitkicker at full gallop.

Jerry's having a blast with the vocals on this one just late '71 greatness all the way around.

I demand a recount! 3 lousy votes for this monster peak powered NFA>GDTRFB>NFA is a travesty. Peak year and tour for this combo - energy and jamsmanship that cannot be denied once heard...not kidding here. .

Lovely, ‘72 perfection.

Hey DS - you've got me on a bender full of Dark Stars... this might last until the New Year for all i know...I've fallen back down the rabbit hole. Tks!

Mystery to me how I have not commented on one of my all time favorite pieces of Grateful Dead music. Embedded in arguably one of the killer'est DS's. They feel around and Jerry signals the trumpet call at 17:15 and you can hear Bob throwing in the rhythm but JG's not ready to go there until he takes us on a screech tour first then at 18:10 Bobby hits that first chord and Jerry drops in. Jerry's elastic solo of the melody from 18:25 to 19:08 can only be described for me as a downright gorgeous and calming hug from my favorite person. Then at 19:35 they pickup another groove and it's just a strident, adamant marching mind meld and when at 20:15 Jerry hits that "extra note" of melodic I love you. Yeah to say I think this is great is an understatement and if you are patient with this DS a lumar ride through Ganymede's mountain ranges awaits you . Also hey is that faintly the sound of Bobby playing with the FG chords again while Jerry goes on a blistering run at 26.26? Can you hear it or did I just dream it?

Ok so we are still totally socked in up here in Maine. Plan B live streams per DS’s recs. Also check out the Griffith https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4uiABtFyGPY. Anyway, just a quick word on this DS which is so completely elemental to my Grateful Dead experience. I had this tape and side one was labeled Dark Star side 2 was Other One>Lovelight. No date or venue. In 8th grade we would play this endlessly on our ride to school imagine 7am bus ride grades 1st - 8th. Classic! This DS is so packed with interludes form the whale calls to the planetary interstellar gear crunches to the most “slip your arm around me hug” of a Feelin’ Groovy. That cosmic tension crunchy metal machine music transitioning into the rhythm of FG and Jerry’s swing of Feelin Groovy is imprinted in my DNA. We crushed the little kids heads along with our own cranking this from a boom box back in the day. My buddy and I actually flipped 2 extra tickets we had camped out for at a local Sears (another story) to our bus driver the following year. Yes I went to my second show with my best friend and our bus driver who was the exact embodiment of Otto Mann before the Simpsons ever came out. Wayne Wise and Bus B forever- yo! Anyway so many transcendent moments as someone mentioned above is right on the money. A hungry, dangerous band indeed in ‘70 imho which is why it’s one of my favorite years.